


S&G side stories

by Sugaredwings (CaffeinatedQueer)



Series: Of Mountains and Deserts [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Childhood, Childhood Friends, Desert AU, Fantasy AU, Friendship, Prequel, shape shifter au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-10-06 10:50:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17343941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaffeinatedQueer/pseuds/Sugaredwings
Summary: Before, after, and alongside A Storm and A God





	S&G side stories

God, he was exhausted.

But if he stopped to rest, he was as good as dead.

As the sun rose pink over the Ringed Mountains, young Kuroo Tetsurou tried to ignore the tug, the yearning, to turn back. He was cold. He was tired. He just wanted to curl up with his mom and sleep the whole day away.

She wasn’t coming back. Even if he turned back, she wouldn’t be there. He was on his own now and he had to be brave.

Bravery was never his strong suit.

Maybe that’s why she left.

The sun had fully crested the opposing mountains, bathing him in dappled orange light. The valley between remained a foggy, sleepy blue. He hoped the resident lion would be aslepe by now. At the very least, maybe they’d have mercy on him. Just to be safe, he found the sturdiest tree he could. The pine trunk was thick with age, but the weathered bark tore under his claws like mud. It took several embarrassing attempts before he was able to reach a safe height.

He had gotten a good sense of the resident lion from his boundary markings. He was a fully grown adult, surely muscular and dominating. Most importantly, he was mundane. Kuroo knew he shouldn’t be quaking with anxiety when faced with a mundane lion— it was his job to keep them in line— but his paws were still too big for his body, his fur still fluffed with kitten softness. No fully matured lion would take him seriously. His human form was even more vulnerable: all rounded cheeks and skinny limbs. There was nothing he could do to stop even a mundane lion from killing him on sight.

So he tried to make himself comfortable high in the tree. He could feel every tremble of life through the limbs. If he could feel songbird stirring in the morning light, he’d have plenty of warning if a fully grown lion tried to reach him.

Sleep overcame him before he was even aware of it. Anxiety wouldn’t let him sleep for long, but his panic quickly subsided as warmth leeched through his coat. For a sleepy moment, he felt at home.

The sun was just past peak. Soon it would set behind the mountain top. He would have to get moving before the nightlife started stirring. With a stretch, he judged the best route down.

“Don’t move.”

The voice made him freeze, hackles immediately raised. It had to be another spirit— mundanes couldn’t talk. He tried to process the tone— a warning but not a threat. Cautiously, he turned his face up to the source.

The bobcat couldn’t be any older than he was. He was _tiny_. Despite his small stature and positively fluffy kitten coat, golden eyes held him in place with command that was pure Toohoo’o.

“Who’re—“

“Shh! There’s a Slide Rock Bolter. It moved to this part of the mountain this afternoon.”

Kuroo tensed. He hadn’t considered facing such a massive creature this close to home. One wrong move could cause the monster to strike, unhooking its tail from the mountainside and devouring everything in its way as it rode the resulting landslide. Even if they escaped its jaws, they’d be crushed and buried.

“What do we do?” He tried to emulate the Toohoo’o’s mature demeanor. Being Kakwe Toohoo’o himself, he should be just as dominating if not more so than this tiny kitten. His paws trembled regardless.

“We have two options,” the kitten calculated, “we can wait it out here, but that could take days. If anything sets it off in that time, we’d be dead anyway. Shh, wait, I’m not done. Our second option is to sneak away, obviously. It’ll be difficult, but I think it’s our best chance. You’ll have to trust me.”

Kuroo eyed the bobcat suspiciously. He would win in a fight, but the stranger didn’t seem aggressive. Bobcats were known for their cunning— natural born tricksters. This could easily be a trick, but Kuroo couldn’t comprehend the motive.

“I literally just want to get out of this alive and I need your help,” the stranger deadpanned. “I’m Kenma.”

“Kuroo. Can you—?”

“Don’t make a big deal about it, I’m still learning. It’s more of an intense empathy right now. We need to get moving before the nocturnals wake up and set it off.”

Kuroo nodded. “We should stick to the tree canopy. It’ll reduce tremors.”

Gold eyes scanned the gaps between trees, Kenma grimaced, “it would be easier to walk. That’s a lot of jumping.”

“It’ll be fun!” Kuroo rose to his feet, taking a quick leap into the next tree. “Come on!”

“I can’t—!”

“You’ll be fine, Kenma! Trust me!”

It took a running start, but Kenma pulled himself into the next tree. The proceeding trees were easier, closer together. Kuroo took the lead, but made sure Kenma never fell behind.

“Is this your mountain or are you just passing through? You’re a bit young for an independent bobcat.”

“Says you. You’re pretty scrawny yourself.”

“Am not.”

“Are too.”

“Am not.”

“Are too. I’m on a journey,” Kenma interrupted their banter, “I’ve been… calledtotheCaelia.”

“What—“

“It’s nothing, it’s not a big deal, don’t worry about it,” the kitten flustered. “What are you doing here, this isn’t your mountain.”

“I’m on my Journey of Self,” Kuroo grinned with pride. It was a much more optimistic experience with company— despite solitude being the whole point. “I’m off to find my own territory.”

“Aren’t you supposed to do that as a coming-of-age thing? You’re still a kid.”

“Well… I’m a prodigy,” he lied. If Kenma could feel his wave of sadness, he pretended not to.

They continued traveling into the night, making a game of who could jump furthest. They only paused to eat. From the tree canopy, the full moon and a sky full of stars lit their path. The colors had just started to turn as they approached the boundaries of the Slide Rock Bolter’s reach.

As if on cue, a bulk of tawny fur and muscle cut into Kuroo’s path. The resident lion was _huge_. Kuroo knew he was young, but the passing night had filled him with confidence. The yowling predator in front of him made him tremble with fear.

Kenma was by his side in a flash, but the slender fingers weaving into his fur told him the kitten had shifted.

“Listen to me,” Kenma’s voice trembled ever so slightly, “we’re in danger. There’s a Slide Rock Bolter on this mountain. We need to leave.”

A growl rumbled low in the big cat’s throat. Disbelief. A threat.

“We’re just trying to leave. He’s not here to take your territory. We just want to leave.”

Kuroo did not like the way the predator was eyeing Kenma. He knew the mundane creatures could be feral, but this felt downright disrespectful. He wasn’t having it.

His coat slipped from Kenma’s fingers as he shifted, standing as tall as his wobbly, lanky legs would let him. Kuroo’s frail, human form wouldn’t stand a chance in a fight, but he hoped his dominance as a spirit would be enough.

“Step down! Know your place!” He was proud of his voice for not shaking, as much as he felt it should. “You should be assisting us in escaping the Slide Rock Bolter, for your own sake.”

Oh, the lion did _not_ like that.

He pounced with a yowl. Kuroo had just enough time to brace himself before he was knocked from the tree. Teeth sunk into his forearm before the force of the impact ripped them out. He frantically tried to will air into his lungs as the lion stood over him.

A bobcat kitten soon pounced onto his back, holding on as tight as his tiny claws would let him. It was enough to give Kuroo time to shift and rise. He found his footing just in time for the ground to start its tell-tale rumble. From where they were, they could hear trees snapping as the landslide made it’s way down the mountainside.

It was moving.

It was moving _fast_.

Kakwe Toohoo’o had an important task: to protect and advocate for the mundane lions. In the face of the oncoming Slide Rock Bolter, Kuroo realized he felt no loyalty to the spitting feline before him. He felt no loyalty to the mundane that threatened him and the family that abandoned him.

The little Toohoo’o, though. The kid who was so quick to support him—

Luckily it was an easy choice. He didn’t have time to debate with himself.

In a bound, he had Kenma by the scruff. Despite his offended noise of protest protest, Kuroo made quick work of dragging the boy through the underbrush. His limbs were longer, his lungs were better, he could make it.

He didn’t look back to see if the lion pursued them. The crumpling of the trees around them told him enough about the predator’s fate. Another leap and he cleared the monster’s path.

It slid by with a roar of destruction. Kuroo curled his body around Kenma to protect the both of them from the wake of falling trees and tumbling land. He could glimpse the rocky leather of its massive body through the dust. Despite the danger, he couldn’t help but admire the sheer scale of the beast as it passed by.

The dust settled. Kuroo carefully shifted until the debris that had fallen across his back released him. Below him a petite human child blinked up at him with wide, golden eyes. His dark hair splayed out like a halo, tangled with twigs and brambles.

Kuroo shifted in turn, offering Kenma a hand up with a reassuring grin. “We did it.”

“Yeah,” Kenma didn’t seem to believe it as he sat up. He took Kuroo’s hand to stand next to him. He didn’t release it. “We did. We did it.”

Before them the mountainside had been cleared. The Slide Rock Bolter left an obvious trail. The only sign that there had ever been life there was the gnarled tree roots buried in the ground, arms outstretched as if they were searching for their missing trunks.

“Kuro?”

The sound startled the boy. It almost sounded like a kitten’s chirp rather than his name. It was endearing. He met Kenma’s eyes with a reassuring smile.

“I have to go. I have to… I have to go to the Caelia. But this territory’s unclaimed now, so I understand if you want to stay…”

“I’ll go with you!” He blurted with maybe a little too much excitement. “We make a really good team and I think— I think you should take me with you.”

The look of relief on Kenma’s face was all it took. Kuroo knew he’d follow this boy to the ends of the Earth.

 


End file.
